1. Field of the Invention
The present invention relates to a pointing apparatus, a pointer control apparatus, a pointing method, and a pointer control method, and more particularly, to a pointing apparatus, a pointer control apparatus, a pointing method, and a pointer control method capable of recognizing image codes included in an image frame using an image sensor to determine a pointing direction, and continuously updating the gain between the displacement of the motion of the pointing apparatus and the displacement of the motion of a displayed pointer.
2. Description of the Related Art
Pointing apparatuses, which use inertial sensors (acceleration sensors or angular velocity sensors), sense an input motion using the inertial sensor and control the motion of a displayed pointer. When the inertial sensor is used to control the motion of a pointer, the motion of the pointer is determined according to the motion of the pointing apparatus regardless of the pointing direction of the pointing apparatus, which is called a relative pointing method.
In the relative pointing method, the user does not need to point a pointing apparatus at a display apparatus. However, the relative point method cannot be used in a case when the pointing apparatus is configured so as to operate only when the user points the pointing apparatus to the display apparatus.
Meanwhile, the gain relationship is established between the displacement of the motion of the pointing apparatus and the displacement of the motion of the pointer that is actually displayed on the display apparatus. In a pointing apparatus that senses a rotary motion using an inertial sensor, when the gain is fixed, the displacement of the motion of the pointer that is displayed on the display apparatus according to the displacement of a rotary motion of the pointing apparatus is fixed regardless of the distance between the pointing apparatus and the display apparatus, which makes it difficult to achieve an absolute pointing apparatus.
As described above, when only the inertial sensor is used, there is no way to provide an absolute pointing apparatus or update the gain. Therefore, a technique for solving these problems has been demanded.